After our adventurous entry into Uganda we decided to slow down a bit and revel in some island peacefulness. Leaving Masaka and its chaos behind us we made our way to Bukakata and the only free ferry in Africa. We had heard about this free ferry and had expected it to be free to locals and residents, but to our surprise we paid not a cent. Not for us, or for our Landcruiser. What a great start!
Having reached the Islands we were astounded by how untouched and pristine they were. Covered in extremely dense and lush rainforest, we were immediately surrounded by new and exciting bird calls echoing through the trees. Occasionally we got a glimpse of something large and brightly coloured flashing through the undergrowth, but we never seemed to get a better look at whatever it was.
After a surprisingly long drive we reached our destination. The beach. Perfect white sand, palm trees and sunshine. What a relief after our run in with Masaka.
We set up camp at the water’s edge and soon caught up with our birding and R&R.
It didn’t seem that our luck was holding out though, as late on that Sunday afternoon speakers were set up and the lodge started blaring extremely loud party music. It turned out that the Islands are the favourite weekend party destination for the inhabitants of Kampala.
Chris and I made tracks to the far end of the beach and our sought after peace and quiet. Here we sat and watched a spectacular sunset over Lake Victoria and tried to count all the new birds we saw but eventually we were hounded back to camp by the hordes of mosquitos after our blood. Thankfully the party atmosphere had been subdued and we spent our evening in front of a bonfire being lulled by Celine Dion’s love ballads…
